Is ‘Vampire Diaries’ Season 7 New This Week? Find Out When Damon And Stefan Return

Fans of “The Vampire Diaries” have to wait a while before they get to see the Salvatore brothers in the future. Although the show jumped ahead three years at the end of Season 7, episode 15, the CW drama won’t reveal Damon’s (Ian Somerhalder) and Stefan’s (Paul Wesley) next adventure until April because of a hiatus.

The customary time slot of “The Vampire Diaries” Friday, March 11, will be filled by a comedy special, “Just for Laughs.” The hourlong program stars Howie Mandel and was filmed last year at the Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal. Expect more filler specials and reruns in coming weeks. The vampire drama won’t return until Friday, April 1.

When the series does return, “TVD” will explore what happened over the last few years with flashbacks, showrunner Julie Plec revealed. “You’ll find there are certain mysteries left unexplored: how did Stefan and Valerie [Elizabeth Blackmore] get together? When did Bonnie [Kat Graham] and Enzo [Michael Malarkey] fall in love? Why is Matt Donovan [Zach Roerig] so pissed?” Plec told Entertainment Weekly. “Starting next episode, you’ll get the answers in the form of what we’re calling ‘Bridge Backs,’ aka a series of scenes that flash back to what happened over the three years that have passed since Damon went into the coffin.”

Since Damon will be in the coffin, that may leave Somerhalder with a little less screen time. That’s probably ideal for episode 16 due to the fact the actor will be directing. Somerhalder first stepped behind the camera for last season’s memorable episode titled “The Downward Spiral,” when Caroline (Candice King) first turned off her humanity.

Speaking of Caroline, expect a little less of her, too. The actress will be absent four consecutive episodes because of her maternity leave (she gave birth to daughter Florence May King Jan. 15). However, she’ll be back just in time for the season finale, which will air Friday, May 13.

She might miss out on Stefan making a life-altering decision. In a promotional video for the episode, Rayna (Leslie-Anne Huff) tells him to ditch his brother. Watch a trailer for “The Vampire Diaries” Season 7, episode 16 below:

“The Vampire Diaries” Season 7 returns to the CW Friday, April 1, at 8 p.m. EDT.